The Camera Was Discovered!?

After leaving the mall, Qiuyue didn't rush back to the dormitory but headed to the library instead.

Qiuyue walked straight toward the mystery novel section of the library, casually picked out a book, glanced around, and spotted that familiar figure.

Qiuyue quickened his pace to the seat across from her, exchanged a smile, and sat down.

"Shiina, long time no see."

Shiina picked up the bookmark resting on the table, placed it on the page she was reading, closed the book, and replied.

"Qiuyue, it hasn't been that long, has it? This past month or so, have you been busy with something? You haven't come to the library much."

"Ahaha... nothing much, you know how it is, just the stuff with Class D. What are you reading today? Knowing you, Shiina, it must be a book with some really clever crime methods, right?"

"I'm currently reading The Tokyo Zodiac Murders. As for you, Qiuyue, you always manage to pick out the most challenging mystery novels every time. It's not on purpose, is it?"

"Uh... is this book really that impressive?"

Qiuyue scratched his head in confusion.

"Looks like you really don't know, Qiuyue. The book you chose, just like last time, is one of the four great mystery novels of Sakura Country."

Qiuyue looked at the front page of the book in his hand: The Offering to the Void.

Qiuyue: (My luck is something else—there are only four books, and I just randomly picked one...)

"Forget that. Shiina, let's deduce how this fight between Class D and Class C is going to play out next."

"Why? I have no interest in class competition."

Shiina seemed uninterested in the topic Qiuyue brought up and reopened the book she had just closed.

"I don't have any interest either. Only Class A gets to enjoy the school's benefits. No matter how you look at it, there's no way we in Class D can rise to Class A. It's easier to just give up early and take it easy."

"Give up?"

Shiina seemed not to understand what Qiuyue said, tilting her head like a confused kitten.

Qiuyue: (I just thought of a great book title: My Oblivious Bookworm Girlfriend.)

"It's a term from Zhonghua Family. It means 'whatever, I don't care anymore, do what you want.' See? My explanation is easy to understand, right?"

As he spoke, Qiuyue flopped directly onto the table, making himself look completely limp.

Seeing Qiuyue slip into the "giving up" pose so quickly, Shiina let out a light laugh.

"...Is that so? Qiuyue, you really never let things get boring. I don't know much about it, but I think Class D's chances of winning are way too small."

"That's true. The fact that Sudo hit someone is already an unchangeable fact. Even if we can prove Class C provoked him and struck first, Sudo doesn't have any real injuries. There's no way Sudo can get off scot-free in this incident. I guess it's his own fault."

"Qiuyue, are you trying to say that if you just deny from the start that it was a Class D student who hit a Class C student, there might still be a turning point? Isn't that right?"

A smile spread across Shiina's face, carrying an air of confidence and self-satisfaction. She seemed very sure of her deduction, as if she had already found the answer to the problem.

Qiuyue: (A loose tongue leads to trouble. Why did I have to bring that up? I underestimated Class C's hidden strategist. I should just stick to being a book buddy...)

(I only came to show my face so Kushida wouldn't come looking for me. What do I do now...)

"...If they had evidence, Class C would have used it when they sued Sudo, right? But they haven't used it yet. Instead, Sudo himself admitted it, and he used such a weak excuse as self-defense."

Qiuyue tried to argue back. Shiina just smiled and said nothing.

"..."

Qiuyue realized his argument was futile, so he gave up and quietly began reading the book in his hand, the one called a masterpiece—The Offering to the Void.

Time flew by, and it was already dinner time. Qiuyue checked his phone, stood up, and said to Shiina.

"It's getting late, I'll head out now. I'll borrow this book—I haven't finished it yet. After I'm done, I'll come back and share my thoughts with you."

"Mm, bye for now. See you next time."

Shiina placed her book on the table and said goodbye to Qiuyue.

"Mm, bye."

After successfully borrowing the book from the library staff, Qiuyue went straight to the cafeteria and chose the second floor.

Qiuyue walked up to the counter and asked the auntie for two meat dishes, one vegetable, and one soup.

"Auntie, can you give me a bit more rice? I have a pretty big appetite."

Qiuyue scanned the area, picked the spot with the fewest people, and sat down at an empty seat.

He began his dinner.

"Oh? Qiuyue-kun?"

Qiuyue followed the sound and saw a striking head of pink long hair.

Qiuyue: (...Seriously? Is this school that small? I run into Ichinose even here?)

(Sigh, forget it, whatever. But why is Chihiro Shiranami right next to you? Haven't you told her yet? Or did you tell her and make up already? That reconciliation was way too fast, wasn't it?)

"It really is Qiuyue-kun da~ Qiuyue-kun, is anyone sitting next to you?"

Ichinose said with great excitement and joy. Chihiro Shiranami seemed to have just realized who the classmate in front of her was.

"Eh... is it that classmate from last time? Little Honami?"

"Ahaha... yes, that's right."

Ichinose recalled how Qiuyue had helped her out by having his confession rejected, and her face flushed with embarrassment as she spoke.

Qiuyue: (...Too fast, right? It's only been a few days, and she's already calling her Little Honami. At this pace of conquest, you really are a succubus, Ichinose...)

"...I'm eating alone here, so there's no one sitting next to me..."

"That's great~ Chihiro-chan, let's sit here, okay?"

"If Little Honami says so... then let's sit here. Little Honami, we'll take this side."

Ichinose wanted to sit next to Qiuyue, but how could Chihiro Shiranami let Ichinose sit beside someone else?

Chihiro Shiranami directly led Ichinose to sit across from Qiuyue, staring at him with hostility in her eyes.

"..."

Qiuyue: (...No need for that...)

Qiuyue was nine parts speechless out of ten, so he simply ignored Chihiro Shiranami's hostility and launched straight into his plan to devour his meal.

"Qiuyue-kun, what does your class plan to do next?"

"What do you mean, what to do?"

Qiuyue pretended not to know what Ichinose was talking about. Ichinose thought he really didn't understand, so she explained.

"It's about Sudo-kun. I went to today's meeting. After all, our Class B still has a cooperative relationship with Class D, so I really hope Class D can win the case.

But no conclusion was reached today. They gave both sides more time to find evidence, and the meeting will resume tomorrow."

Qiuyue: (...I know all this...)

Qiuyue sighed.

"As I said before, I can't really help much either. I don't know what their plans are from here. When the sky falls, there are taller people to hold it up. I believe they'll think of something."

"...Is that so..."

"That's how it is. I'm not the class leader, nor am I a central figure. I'm just a dispensable small fry. It's normal that I don't know, so asking me is asking the wrong person, Ichinose-san."

"Not at all, that's not true. I think Qiuyue-kun is a very gentle and amazing person. You're not a small fry. Qiuyue-kun can't say that about yourself."

Ichinose shook her head with some agitation, raised her index finger, and waved it left and right in front of Qiuyue as she retorted.

Qiuyue: (...Me... gentle? Damn that yasashii... This word that has nothing to do with me in either of my lives—hearing someone say I'm yasashii really surprises me.)

Seeing Ichinose act this way, Chihiro Shiranami's hostility toward Qiuyue deepened, deepening to the point where it could almost condense.

"...Thank you, Ichinose-san. I never thought I was such a good person."

"Qiuyue-kun, you don't always have to put yourself down like that. I think Qiuyue-kun is a good person, da yo."

Qiuyue: (...Did I just get friend-zoned?... And also... -kun?)

"I've been wanting to ask since earlier. What's with the '-kun'?"

Hearing this, Ichinose suddenly became reserved and said cautiously:

"Eh... Qiuyue...-kun, you... don't... want me to?"

Ichinose felt she had suddenly closed the distance too much and had annoyed Qiuyue.

"...Do whatever you want. It's just a form of address. Then I'll drop the '-san' too."

"That's fine."

Ichinose said this with a renewed smile.

Qiuyue: (As someone from the Zhonghua Family, I don't really mind this sort of thing.)

After the topic ended, Qiuyue wolfed down his food, finishing everything in a few quick bites.

"I'm done eating. Ichinose, Shiranami-san, I'll be going first."

"Eh... so fast! Qiuyue-kun, you didn't have to rush."

"I'm used to eating this fast. Sorry about that, Ichinose."

"It's fine. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow."

Qiuyue returned to his room and immediately opened the drawer where he had placed the tablet earlier.

"Still recording... Let me take a quick look at the playback from before."

Qiuyue rewatched Hirata and Horikita installing the camera to trick Class C.

"No problems. Got the full recording. Looks like I won't need it. Letting Horikita get expelled is one thing, but I can't let Hirata get expelled too. At least not until I leave Class D. Otherwise, Class D will collapse."

Just as Qiuyue was tidying up his things, ready to take a nice bath, the surveillance footage gradually turned into static.

Qiuyue saw this scene and his hair stood on end.

"What's going on? What went wrong? How did it end up like this? Bad signal? Huh? The image is moving—who's holding the camera?"

The camera footage shook for a good while before finally settling back down. The mosaic was gone too, and the image was no different from before.

"This is a pinhole camera jammer!! The reason he picked it up just now was to check if there was a memory card inside!!

Pinhole cameras come in two types: one is wired, capable of real-time recording; the other has an internal memory card—remove the card from the camera and you can watch the footage."

"Since he has this, and he already found my pinhole camera, why didn't he use it from the start? Why let me capture Horikita and Hirata instead?"

"He's not in Class D? Does he want me to get someone from Class D expelled? Without Hirata, Class D's current order would definitely collapse... but then again, not necessarily. There's one person who could pull it off. Ayanokoji... is it you?"